Founded in Freehold, NJ in 1883
A Grand Time Multiple Piano Extravaganza - Grand Pianos performing at the same time!
The Monster Concert is an exhilarating, challenging, and fulfilling event that provides students with a piano ensemble experience and a sense of camaraderie with others and goes all the way back to 18th-century Leipzig. It gives them a feeling of being part of a project larger than themselves and allows them to feel the power that music has, to create bonds between great numbers of people. Preparing for the concert teaches students the joy of accomplishing their goals and bringing happiness to others through art.
To Participate
Teachers submitting student entries: Members in good standing are eligible to participate or enter their students into the program. Pianists ages 8 and up are welcome. Teachers are also welcome to perform. Each student performer will receive a medal and a certificate of participation. A trophy will be awarded to students who have participated for 5, 7 and 9 years. Teachers will receive a certificate of participation as well as plaques for a 5-year award. Due to the popularity of this event, the students will be accommodated on a first-come, first-serve basis. Once the spots are filled for each piece, the piece will be closed, so register early!
Student Participants: The Concert is open to pianists ages 8 and up. In order to sign up students to this event, a teacher must be a current member of The Cecilian Music Club in good standing. Each student-performer will receive a medallion and Certificate of Participation. A trophy award will be given to the High School Seniors, and students with 5, 7, 9 -year participation. Teachers are welcome to participate; teachers will receive a Certificate of Participation, a plaque for 5 years and inserts for each of the following years of participation. The Student in the Elementary level is requested to partner with the teacher or advanced student.
Dates and Deadlines
Deadline to Register:
Postmarked by November 5, 2025 or before midnight of November 5, 2025 for ONLINE registration.
Late fees of $10.00 will be charged per student after Nov. 5, 2025.
Registration Closes:
Registration will be closed at the end of the day on November 15, 2025.
Rehearsal Date:
Saturday, January 17, 2026 from 2:00~6:30pm
Rehearsal schedule to be announced. Rehearsal is MANDATORY for ALL participants.
Concert Date:
Sunday, January 18, 2026, at 2:00 pm
Location:
Brookdale Community College, Performing Arts Center, Lincroft, NJ
Entry fee: There is a non-refundable entry fee of $80 for each student performer. Teachers should collect fees from students and send one check payable to the Cecilian Music Club. Entries must be postmarked by the deadline for paper registration and must be submitted by midnight of the day of the deadline for online registration. Late fee of $10.00 will be charged per student for late registrations submitted after the deadline. Registration closes end of the day on November 15, 2025.
Concert tickets: Each ticket costs $30. There will be no admission without a ticket. Performers will receive a ticket for entry to the concert premises as part of their registration. Children under age 8 will not be admitted. No admission without a ticket.
If you have any questions, please email cecilian.monster.concert@gmail.com
About Our Conductor: Pianist Kairy Koshoeva, DMA
Kairy Koshoeva’s musical journey began in Kyrgyzstan and led her to the Gnessin Academy of Music in Moscow, Russia. Her pedagogical lineage includes notable figures such as Bella Zubok, Faina Kharmatz, and Lazar Berman. She has performed internationally in Israel, France, Germany, Russia, Turkey, and Switzerland, collaborating with renowned orchestras like the Kansas City Symphony and the National Symphony of Kyrgyzstan.
Kairy holds a Doctor of Musical Arts in Piano Performance from the University of Missouri-Kansas City Conservatory and an Artist Diploma from Oberlin Conservatory. Mentored by Robert Weirich, Monique Duphil, and Vera Nosina, she has honed her artistry under their guidance.
Since 2015, Kairy has been teaching at The New School for Music Study, following prior positions at the University of Kansas and UMKC Conservatory. She was awarded Teacher of Distinction at the Carnegie Hall Celebration of Excellence in 2019. Her versatile performance career includes solo recitals, chamber music, and concerto performances across the globe. She has won top prizes in the International Piano Competition in Vicenza, Italy, and the N. Rubinstein Competition in Paris.
Honored as the Honored Artist of Kyrgyzstan in 2013, Kairy's contributions also extend to collaborations with the Owen/Cox Dance Group. She performed as a guest artist at the 2023 National Conference on Keyboard Pedagogy (NCKP) and was honored to be the Guest Left-Hand Artist for renowned pedagogue Ingrid Clarfield’s presentations at NCKP in 2021 and 2025. For more information, visit KairyKoshoeva.com.
Where do Monsters come from?
The "Monster Concert" dates back to Bach, who first wrote a 4-piano concerto in the 1730s, performed at the regular mid-week coffeehouse concerts in Leipzig, which Bach participated in with friends. In 1830, the composer Carl Czerny organized a performance to raise money for victims of a recent flooding of the Danube River. 20 pianists sat at 10 pianos on one stage, led by a conductor through their program of four-hands duet pieces. Since then, Monster Concerts have popped up all over the world, including in the Americas with the work of Eugene List and Louise Moreau Gottschalk.
Our former president, Beth S. Chen, brought this musical tradition to the Cecilian Music Club's annual repertoire, and in 1997, the Club's first Monster Concert was led under the baton of Dr. Stefan Young. Since 1999, Ms. Chen has conducted the performances. In 2004 and 2007, our students got the chance to participate in the Monster Concert of the Shanghai International Children's Cultural and Art Festivals, playing as part of a 100-piano ensemble.